February 26, 2020 my son told me that things looked shaky and he suggested that we pick up supplies of food that would last for 2 months. I was like, alrighty I’m going to pick up my paczki so I’ll pick up some extra canned goods, a few flats of water bottles and a 25 lb bag of rice. None of it will go to waste in my house and I always have a fully stocked pantry and freezer, something I’ve been picked on for in previous years. While at the store, I also saw hand sanitizer so I grabbed a couple, just in case. I already had my Costco sized supply of toilet paper, paper towel and facial tissue because simply put, that’s how I roll baby.
I kept my son’s suggestion in my thoughts as I did the buying for our store. Normally, hand sanitizer is not a big seller, but I decided to roll the dice and order up on the stuff. I also ordered up on immune support supplements and I built a display with a sign saying, “We’ve Got You Covered.” When I noticed that the Dr. Mercola Liposomal Vitamin C, our best and most expensive one was getting bought up, I rolled the dice again and placed a sizable order. It’s size made me a little nervous, but I figured if I was wrong, our corporate buyer would help me out and transfer the surplus to the other stores. However, I was not wrong, not at all and I wish I had ordered more from the get go.
We were never a store to sell much of any toilet paper and who would have thought that people would go crazy buying such large amounts that the shelves at our little store, as well as the huge ones would go bare. Hand sanitizer I could kind of understand ( for the record, you’re better off actually washing your hands and not touching your face), but toilet paper? Why are people buying 30 cases of water? Will tap water suddenly become poisonous? For two weeks running, our sales tripled! We had many new customers who referred to us as a hidden gem because we actually had product on our shelves and low and behold, at better prices. I told those people, please remember us and visit again.
I’ve always been one who tries to be prepared and it has worked for me in the past, but now I’m really glad that I have this mentality. It has allowed me to remain calm in the face of all this uncertainty. However, I have a young customer who has been telling me what he thought would happen weeks ahead of the game and he has been right every time. I saw him recently and told him that he needs to stop being right. His response, through his fancy face mask was that it is going to get worse and he has bought a crossbow. A chill went up my spine and I went into a survival mindset.
Have you ever seen the movie Terminator 2: Judgement Day? This is the movie where Linda Hamilton’s character is locked up in a mental institution and she is spending her time getting in shape for the ultimate battle. I’ll never forget viewing her physical transformation from the “Beauty” in the TV show Beauty and the Beast to this lean mean fighting machine, not an ounce of fat on her, a skeleton with muscles and nothing but determination in her eyes. Then, the news came through that the our state and others would be under shelter-in-place and I went into action.
I called my son and I told him about the customer with the crossbow. I instructed him to make a purchase for us, just in case. I had to go to the bank for the store, but on my way out I grabbed 6 gallons of water, 6 dozen eggs, a bag of onions (I was running low) and a few of my favorite immune supporting supplements. I had been meaning to pick up more bottled water and now was the time to do it. While at the bank, I withdrew extra cash for myself. My son had said to have some, but now I felt I needed more. My heart was pounding. I was running on pure adrenaline and if someone had gotten in my way, odds are I would have punched them in the face. I was preparing for battle and no one, I mean no one was going to stop me.
Now, normally I’m a pretty easy going person, but when it comes to feeling threatened, especially if I feel the need to protect my loved ones, I become Linda Hamilton in a heartbeat. I’ve been working out harder, planning my meals more in depth. Do we have everything we need? Check, check and check. My brother always told me that I would make an excellent drill sergeant in the Army, he would be correct. No customer was going to make our already intense situation more challenging. I was up to protect my team and no one was going to make our jobs anymore difficult by being ignorant to the rules we had in place. I am not holding product for anyone. You want it? Get in here…now. You need me more than I need you. I guess one might say, I have turned into Arnold’s character in that movie.
I go out shopping on my day off and I see all these people with their face masks and gloves. Do they even really know why they are donning them? Do they know that their not supposed to remove them to ask me a question? Do they know how silly it is that they have them below their nose? How about goggles? I respect more the folks that are doing the whole thing, including the goggles, but really the best defense is do not touch your face and wash your hands a whole lot more than you ever thought about doing before. My hands are so beat up, but I am doing my best to protect myself because I am on the front line. My son, he hasn’t left the house for maybe three weeks now except one day to work on our garden.
Ah yes, our garden. We have been planting vegetables for the past few years, a sudden interest of my son that I wholeheartedly support. Back in the day, I had quite the garden going, but now we are composting as well. I decided to support my local hardware store and purchase some seeds and potting soil to get things started before the weather is nice enough to put them outdoors. What if I can’t buy starter plants this year? What if things really do get that bad? We’re prepared and if someone thinks that they are going to steal from us…we’re prepared. Hopefully, none of this will come to pass, but… we’re prepared.
Being prepared makes me feel strong and in control. I feel lighter, I’m standing taller and I’m not afraid. I count my blessings everyday that I am in an industry that is considered essential and that I have a job to go to. Part of that job is to make certain that not only do we have the products to sell, but that my team feels safe and secure. They know I have their backs and no customer’s tantrum will be tolerated. My size alone is something that intimidates folks, but I think more so is my manner of remaining totally calm in the middle of a storm. You think you’re going to take me down? Think again. I may not have the strength or knowledge to defeat them, but they don’t know that.
When I was in high school, I wanted to play softball. I couldn’t hit, throw or catch, but for a fee I could join a team at the Rec Center, so I did. My teammates knew how much I sucked, but the other teams did not. I would stand at the plate and do my best “I’m gonna hit this bitch out of the park.” stance and guess what? They would walk me! I didn’t even have to try to hit the ball because I scared them into believing that I was a heavy hitter…Ha!
Back to present day. Am I scared? To a point, yes. However, I have done everything I possibly can do to be prepared for a worse case scenario and I will continue to educate myself on immune support (your best defense) so I can best take care of myself and serve my customers. I’m getting plenty of sleep, drinking water, exercising and controlling my stress levels. I feel stronger and I have even managed to lose a few pounds in the process. I was worried about emotional eating, but it turns out that getting myself some fried chicken the other day didn’t hurt me one bit. I really wanted it, so I ate, no guilt or shame required.
I am looking forward to practicing with my crossbow (it’s in pink camouflage) when the target I ordered arrives. I will hang it in my garage and shoot towards a brick wall, I have no desire to unintentionally harm someone, but I want to have the strength and skill to pull back that bow and stand my ground IF I feel threatened. I want to be prepared, mentally, physically and spiritually and with the help of my friend’s teen-aged daughter, I will be. She is a good shot and willing to work with me when we are able to leave our shelter-in-place rules. Funny thing, I have always felt that this young one would be my guide. She is an old soul, like her mother and a guiding light in my life. I’m going to practice on my own until that faithful day, but I am prepared, confident and I feel strong. Don’t mess with me, I’m a survivor. Are you?
#thelieswechoosetolivewith
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